Guest Post: Congresswoman DeLauro Reports on Sandy Impact in Her District

For much of the week of October 29-November 2, I traveled throughout Connecticut’s Third District and across the state to visit and assist people who were first preparing for, and then recovering from, Hurricane Sandy. The damage in Milford, one of the hardest hit of our communities, was especially sad to see. But the scenes, in Milford and across the state, were both heartbreaking and uplifting. These families, many of whom were hit by Tropical Storm Irene, are determined to rebuild; there is no doubt they will come out of this stronger than ever.

In Milford surveying the flooding

Sandy is the third severe storm to slam into Connecticut in just over a year. But, as we have seen after each storm, the American people have an unbelievable ability to pull together in situations like this. The federal, state and local emergency plans were very impressive and Connecticut was as prepared as we possibly could have been. I will continue to work to ensure we successfully recover from the storm.

Here, local officials, including myself, are in New Haven the night before the storm hit, addressing members of the press with local officials. I told people “Don’t be macho. Get out of your house if they’ve asked you to evacuate.” Thankfully, many people heeded the evacuation warnings.

In West Haven with Deputy Fire Chief Pat Pickering, calling United Illuminating Company (UI) for a tree crew to assist the pictured lineman.

I worked with local officials from Stratford to Guilford to keep the pressure on UI and Connecticut Light & Power to make sure power was restored as soon as possible. It appears the utility companies have learned their lesson after Tropical Storm Sandy and last year’s Halloween snowstorm and their response after Irene was much improved.

Here I joined Mayor DeStefano and Bernie Sweeney, District Director of Connecticut’s US Small Business Administration Office, at Phoenix Press, a small printing company in New Haven that sustained damage to both their building and equipment during Hurricane Sandy.

It is incredibly important that people eligible for assistance register with FEMA to begin the process as early as possible. Please visit the Hurricane Sandy section of my website for more information on what kind of assistance is available.

Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro represents Connecticut’s Third Congressional District. She is co-chair of the Long Island Sound Caucus